How to Find the Perfect Scent for You

Posted by Dragana Kovacevic on March 30, 2020

Sure, other beauty routines may fall by the wayside during quarantine, but social distancing may finally give us that chance to turn inwards and explore lesser-known parts of ourselves. Especially if you’re looking for a way to stimulate your by-now-likely-dulled senses (and assuming you have the time), taking your nose on an olfactory adventure may be just the thing to try.

Your signature scent will not only announce your arrival and forever be associated directly with you when we’re done with social distancing, but it also gives you another way to express yourself (just as your clothes or hairstyle do).

Here’s how to discover your perfect signature scent, with materials you likely already have at home.

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Get in the right mindset and make it an experience

Don’t rush this process. Take your time and revel in the exploration of titillating your olfactory sense. Consider how wine, chocolate, or coffee connoisseurs sample and taste their chosen delicacies, by zeroing in on their nuances. This is the approach you want to take. It takes time to sharpen your sense of smell so it becomes discerning and sensitive. It’s true: you can train your nose and now might just be the time to try because here’s a little secret: having a signature scent is one of the 15 simple things stylish women do every day.

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Follow Your Nose

Make a list and explore the natural scents you already know you enjoy, be it in:

As with flavours, we tend to prefer the familiar when it comes to scent, so you will likely be drawn to what you already know. But take note, you may discover that your preferences change over time.

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Your nose knows: You’ll never smell like your gal pal

Think of your ideal scent as a signature scent. This is for good reason, because this scent is like a fingerprint – unique to you. Each person’s body chemistry affects how scent changes once it blends with the skin. As the famous 19th century Parisian perfumer Pierre-Francois Gerlain famously said, “you are the last note of the perfume.”

Factors such as your skin pH (acidity), stage of life and even hormones transform the fragrance, changing it into something unique and something personal to you. This is why the same perfume won’t smell the same on you as it smells on your pal.

Even with all things being equal (i.e. such as you and your roomie sniffing the same bottle of perfume), the smell you smell will smell different to someone else. This is because over time, your nose has been sensitized to certain notes more than others, and the opposite may be true of your roomie. So while you may pick up more citrus in a scent, your friend may zero in on other notes, such as vanilla.

So, not only might your preference evolve from the one-note sweet mists you gravitated to as a teenager, your more nuanced “nasal palette” might simultaneously prefer more complex, nuanced fragrances.

Understand how scents work: It’s about the layers

Similarly, scents are layered and are delivered in a spray bottle, oil, roller ball or bottle for dabbing, or as a body mist.

EDP tends to have deeper, subtler, longer-lasting layers that unfold over a longer period of time, whereas EDT has greater alcohol content and has a stronger initial scent, which diffuses wider and faster over time. You can think of it this way:

You’d spray EDT on your clothes for everyone to smell, while EDP you’d apply to yourself for intimate contact.

The best way to sample scents: Round up your testers, samples and the rest

This is the part where you may want to round up any freebies, gifts, or samples to test out from home. If you are sensitive to perfumes and colognes, you can also try natural scents and oils, such as vanilla bean, rosemary, etc.

During non-quarantine times, you could request samples from department stores. Another pro-tip: Sephora will prep samples of their collections upon request if they don’t have the specific sample you’re interested in.

The best way to sample scents: A clean palate

The ideal way to sample scent is early in the morning when your nose is sensitive, and hasn’t yet had the chance to be inundated with various aromas. Choose no more than 2-3 scents at a time to play around with, and begin with the lightest scent first, if possible.

Some perfumers also suggest breaking up and “cleansing your nasal palate” in-between smelling each scent. While some swear by coffee or another strong scent, the best way to do this is to actually go for something neutral, or subtle and familiar (such as the inside of your shirt). You want to give your nose the chance to reset before bringing it to a new scent.

The best way to sample scents: X marks the spot

Spritz or dab each fragrance on the inside of either arm (pick the crook of an elbow, or another part that you won’t wash frequently), and leave it. The scent will transform throughout the day, so you don’t want to choose your signature scent in a rush. Ideally, you want to allow the fragrance to aerate 4 hours or more, but no less than 15 minutes to really give it a fair shot.

The best way to sample scents: Keep revisiting

Keep going back to your two-three scents throughout the day, and see which you like more each time. Note also how each changes over time. If you need to, repeat this process over a few days, with different aromas.

You may also want to spray it in your hair, as your hair is a great diffuser (though not good for your hair in the long-run, if there’s any alcohol content).

Switch it up sometimes

Lastly, even if you’ve zeroed in on something you love, remember to switch it up sometimes, particularly seasonally. Warmer spring and summer months typically work best with lighter, fresher scents, while fall and winter tend to bring out the best of deeper, muskier notes.